An Inquiry into the Original of Our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue. Francis Hutcheson

Thus we find little Pleasure in discovering that a Line bisecting the vertical Angle of an Isosceles ||^16bTriangle, bisects^b|| the Base, or the Reverse; or, that Equilateral Triangles are Equiangular. These Truths we ||^17calmost^c|| know Intuitively, without Demonstration: They are like common Goods, or those which Men have long possessed, which do not give such sensible ||^18dJoys^d|| as much smaller new Additions may give us. But let none hence imagine, that the sole Pleasure of Theorems is from Surprize; for the same Novelty of a single Experiment does not please us much: nor ought we to conclude from the greater Pleasure accompanying a new, or unexpected Advantage, that Surprize, or Novelty is the only Pleasure of Life, or the only ground of Delight in ||^19eTruth.^ae||

      Corollarys.

      V. There is another Beauty in Propositions, ||²⁰which cannot be omitted; which is||, When one Theorem ||²¹contains|| a ||²²vast|| Multitude of Corollarys easily deducible from it. Thus ||²³that Theorem which gives us the Equation of a Curve, whence perhaps most of its Propertys may be deduc’d, does some way please and satisfy our Mind above any other Proposition||: Such a Theorem ||²⁴also|| is the 35th of the 1st Book of Euclid, from which the whole Art of measuring right-lin’d Areas is deduc’d, by [34] Resolution into Triangles, which are the halfs of so many Parallelograms; and these are each respectively equal to so many Rectangles of the Base into the perpendicular Altitude: The 47th of the 1st ||²⁵Book|| is another of like Beauty, and so are many ||²⁶others||.

      ²⁷In the search of Nature there is the like Beauty in the Knowledge of some great Principles, or universal Forces, from which innumerable Effects do flow. Such is Gravitation, in Sir Isaac Newton’s Scheme; ||²⁸such also is the Knowledge of the Original of Rights, perfect and imperfect, and external; alienable and unalienable, with their manner of Translations; from whence the greatest Part of moral Dutys may be deduc’d in the various Relations of human Life.||

      It is easy to see how Men are charm’d with the Beauty of such Knowledge, besides its Usefulness; and how this sets them upon deducing the Propertys of each Figure from one Genesis, and demonstrating the mechanick Forces from one Theorem of the Composition of Motion; even after they have sufficient Knowledge and Certainty in all these Truths from distinct independent Demonstrations. And this Pleasure we enjoy even when we have no Prospect of obtaining any other ||²⁹Advantage|| from such [35] Manner of Deduction, ||³⁰than|| the immediate Pleasure of contemplating the Beauty: nor could Love of Fame excite us to such regular Methods of Deduction, were we not conscious that Mankind are pleas’d with them immediately, by this internal Sense of their Beauty.

      Fantastick Beauty.

      It is no less easy to see into what absurd ||³¹Attempts|| Men have been led by this Sense of Beauty, and ||³²a silly Affectation|| of obtaining it in the other Sciences as well as the Mathematicks. ’Twas this probably which set Descartesⁱ on that hopeful Project of deducing all human Knowledge from one Proposition, viz. Cogito, ergo sum; while others ||³³with as little Sense contended||, that Impossibile est idem simul esse & non esse, had much fairer Pretensions to the Style and Title of Principium humanae Cognitionis absolutè primum. Mr. Leibnitzⁱⁱ had an equal Affection for his favourite Principle of a sufficient Reason for every thing in Nature, and ||³⁴brags to Dr. Clarkeⁱⁱⁱ|| of the Wonders he had wrought in the intellectual World by its Assistance; ||³⁵but his learned Antagonist seems to think he had not sufficient Reason for his Boasting.^*|| If we look into particular Sciences, we ||³⁶may see in the Systems learned Men have given us of them,|| [36] the Inconveniences of this Love of Uniformity. ||³⁷How|| aukardly ||³⁸is Puffendorf^iv forc’d to|| deduce the several Dutys of Men to God, themselves, and their Neighbours, from his single fundamental Principle of Sociableness to the whole Race of Mankind?³⁹ This Observation ||⁴⁰might easily be extended farther, were it necessary; and|| is a strong Proof that Men ||⁴¹have a Sense of Beauty in|| Uniformity in the Sciences, ||⁴²even from the Contortions of common Sense they are led into by pursuing it||.

      VI. This Delight which accompanys Sciences, or universal Theorems, may really be call’d a kind of Sensation; since it necessarily accompanys the Discovery of any Proposition, and is distinct from bare Knowledge it self⁴³, being most violent at first, whereas the Knowledge is uniformly the same. And however Knowledge enlarges the Mind, and makes us more capable of comprehensive Views and Projects in some kinds of Business, whence Advantage may also arise to us; yet we may leave it in the Breast of every Student to determine, whether he has not often felt this Pleasure without any such prospect of Advantage from the Discovery of his Theorem. All ||⁴⁴which|| can thence be infer’d is only this, that as in our external Senses, so in our internal ones, the pleasant Sensations generally arise from those Objects which calm Reason [37] would have recommended, had we understood their Use, and which might have engag’d our pursuits from Self-interest.

      VII. ⁴⁵If any alledge, “that this Pleasure in Theorems arises only at first, upon the Novelty of the Discovery, which occasions Surprize:” It must be own’d indeed that^* Novelty is generally very agreeable, and heightens the Pleasure in the Contemplation of Beauty; but then the Novelty of a particular Truth, found out by measuring, as above mention’d, gives no considerable Pleasure, nor Surprize. That then which is pleasant and surprizing, is the first Observation of this Unity amidst such a great Variety. There is indeed another kind of Surprize, which adds to the Beauty of some Propositions less universal, and may make them equally pleasant with more universal ones; as when we discover a general Truth which seem’d before, upon some confus’d Opinion, to be a Falshood: as that Assymptotes always approaching should never meet the Curve. This is like that Joy, which may be very strong and violent, upon the unexpected Arrival of a small Advantage, from that Occasion from which we apprehended great Evil; but still this Unity of many Particulars in the general Theo-[38]rem, is necessary to make it pleasant, in any case.

      Works of Art.

      VIII.⁴⁶ As to the Works of Art, were we to run thro the various artificial Contrivances or Structures, we should ||⁴⁷constantly|| find the Foundation of the Beauty which appears in them, ||⁴⁸to be|| some kind of Uniformity, or Unity of Proportion among the Parts, and of each Part to the Whole. As there is a ||⁴⁹vast|| Diversity of Proportions possible, and different Kinds of Uniformity, so there is room enough for that Diversity of Fancys observable in Architecture, Gardening, and such like Arts in different Nations; they all may have Uniformity, tho the Parts in one may differ from those in another. The Chinese or Persian Buildings are not like the Grecian and Roman, and yet the former has its Uniformity of the various Parts to each other, and to the Whole, as well as the latter. In that kind of Architecture which the Europeans call Regular, the Uniformity of Parts is very obvious, the several Parts are regular Figures, and either equal or similar at least in the same Range; the Pedestals are Parallelopipedons or square Prisms; the Pillars, Cylinders nearly; the Arches Circular, and all those in the same Row equal; there is the same Proportion every where observ’d in the same Range between the Diameters of Pillars and their Heights, their Capitals, the Dia-[39]meters of Arches, the Heights of the Pedestals, the Projections of the Cornice, and all ||⁵⁰the|| Ornaments in each of our five Orders. And tho other Countrys do not follow the Grecian or Roman Proportions; yet there is even among them a Proportion retain’d, a Uniformity, and Resemblance of corresponding Figures; and every Deviation in one part from ||⁵¹that|| Proportion which is observ’d in the rest of the Building, is displeasing to every Eye, and destroys or diminishes at least the Beauty of the Whole.

      ⁵²IX. The same might be observ’d thro all other Works of Art, even to the meanest Utensil; the Beauty of every one of which we shall always find to have the same Foundation of Uniformity amidst Variety, without which they ||⁵³appear|| mean, irregular and deform’d. [40]

SECTION IV